Ponte Grande bridge

E235625

The Ponte Grande bridge is a strategically important crossing near Syracuse in Sicily that was a key objective for Allied airborne forces during the 1943 invasion of the island in World War II.

All labels observed (1)

Label Occurrences
Ponte Grande bridge canonical 1

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (41)

Predicate Object
instanceOf bridge
military objective
associatedWith airborne assault landings in Sicily
glider-borne infantry operations
captureDate 1943-07-10
capturedBy 2nd Battalion, South Staffordshire Regiment
British airborne troops
conflictSide defended by Axis
targeted by Allies
controlledBy Allied forces after 1943-07-10
Axis forces before 1943-07-10
country Italy
crosses Anapo River
defendedBy Italian coastal defense units
heritage site of World War II battle
historicalPeriod 1943
keyObjectiveFor 1st Airlanding Brigade
Allied airborne forces
British 1st Airborne Division
locatedIn Sicily
locatedNear Syracuse
militarySignificance vital to prevent Axis demolition and blocking of Allied advance
nearFeature Syracuse–Ragusa road
notableEvent initial capture by small airborne force and subsequent counterattack
notableFor being one of the first Allied airborne objectives in the Italian campaign
objectiveType bridge seizure and hold until relieved
operation Allied invasion of Sicily
surface form: Operation Husky
partOf Syracuse area road network
presentStatus existing road bridge near Syracuse
purposeDuringOperation to allow rapid Allied advance into Syracuse
recaptureDate 1943-07-10
recapturedBy German forces
Italian forces
region Province of Syracuse
securedBy British 5th Division
surface form: British 5th Infantry Division
securedDate 1943-07-10
strategicImportance key crossing on southern approaches to Syracuse
strategicRole facilitated capture of Syracuse by Allied forces
theaterOfWar Mediterranean Theater of Operations
surface form: Mediterranean theatre of World War II
usedDuringConflict Allied invasion of Sicily
World War II
surface form: Second World War

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (1)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Operation Ladbroke primaryTarget Ponte Grande bridge